CodyMein

Japan Day 6 🇯🇵🗾

June 14, 2026

I found it difficult to caption the final days of my Japan trip, but this will be the last among the posts I will be dropping about my first in Japan.

The final full day of Japan, was me traveling to Kobe Bryant 💜💛🏀 mainly visiting the Kobe Nunobiki Herb Gardens & Ropeway. We had to go there via a gondola lift 🚠 ; The first time I rode one. Once we reached the garden you can see the amazing view from above of the city of Kobe. The garden looked like I was in Europe or Little Amsterdam in Cebu.

Exploring through the garden, you can see so many beautiful flowers, plants and areas worth to sit upon and relax. The best part of the garden was looking for the gnomes because they gave us a task that if you complete it, you will get a prize at the reception area but me and Dad didn't and that's okay because we were satisfied with our trip anyway alongside knowing that one of our favourite basketball teams the Knicks 🧡💙 won the NBA championship on the same day.

Looking through Kobe, it reminds me of Hong Kong quite a bit due to its congested urban planning yet forested mountains and rural areas. Comparing Kobe to other cities in the Kansai region, Kobe felt like if Metro Cebu had great urban planning and was optimized to its fullest potential due to its similar geography of the scenic setting of mountains framing the iconic harbor and coastline and historical context of being an important international trading port for the country. But one can dream of that happening, Kobe felt like the met reality in a different place.

After spending the whole day in Kobe, we decided to prepare and go back to our hotel and prepare for tomorrow to come home 🇵🇭. Kobe left me a great impression that I can return to Japan 🗾🇯🇵 very soon and throughout all the places and cities I went, all the more I miss Japan. Although the last day wasn't my favourite day, my favourite day was Day 3 in Kyoto. It was still important to me seeing more of Japan.

Ranking of cities of Japan 🏙️

1. Kyoto
2. Osaka
3. Nara
4. Kobe

Japan Day 4

June 12, 2026

It was a step back of a itinerary compared to the past 3 days. The day was mostly spent traveling around downtown Osaka.

In the morning, we started off by walking around the city looking for thrift shops, premium shops and gazed around the city life during daytime. Then we had a drive towards another downtown district where you get to see plenty of shops and restaurants that we ended up stopping by which I ate roast thinly sliced beef with a raw egg yolk. I also got to see a Knicks in Four poster hehe.

After that, we walked around the train station which felt like a shopping mall with so much more in just stop, they had it all! Iconic highlights were the clothes they sold, Muji, Baskin Robbins which I ate 9.8/10, and bakeshops.

We then went back to the surface to the streets walking around the city with iconic highlights being the stopping by was the Japanese cheesecake food stall, going to a large multifloor mall with UniQlo, GU and a Cinema full of Michael Jackson promotions and a lot of J-Pop and K-Pop music discs, and CDs.

At night we went to Haruka 300 seeing the amazing view to metropolitan area above. If I can recall it was the 60th Floor!!! The most floors I've ever been in a building!! Seeing the amazing view from mid-to-late afternoon to nightime 🌇 🌆 🌃.

Then we concluded our day eating McDonalds Japan, Ten times better than McDonald's Philippines with it's iconic beef patties and milkshakes and rode a train back to the hotel and rested.

Day 4 was the most relaxing of the trip so far but very fulfilling catching breathe of fresh air to a city I wish to live at.

Japan Day 3 Part 3 🇯🇵

June 11, 2026

The stop by from Downtown Kyoto had plenty of options to stop and buy. But entering Kodaji Park was entering the old Edo period of Kyoto. It showed how beautiful and timeless it was too see what if Japan stayed feudal.

The cherry on top was the Kodaji Temple ⛩️ where I can see how serene and beautifully curated the area was.

While walking back from Kodaji Temple to Edion mall we passed by at Gion Corner where they host Geisha shows and Keninji Temple. Showing how Japan's culture cultivated during the Edo Period.

Then we entered Hanamikoji Street where you feel like you're in a film set but actually a functional area full of shops and houses.

Now we went to Edion where we found plenty of items but the highlights were seeing a separate Nintendo, Playstation, Puzzles and Trading Card Game areas where I bought a PS4 Game and 2 Puzzles that were high quality.

After that we returned to Osaka via Light Rail Train and had a short night city walk around the city and called it a day.

After 13 days of pausing, I'm back

Japan Day 3, Part 2 🇯🇵

June 11, 2026

Kyoto Trip!!

After going a long walk in the city, I entered to their shopping district in Downtown Kyoto. It was more than hour of walking around this bustling area, there was plenty of food, clothes, outfits, products and many more. Teramachi, Shijo and Kawaramachi streets around Nakagyo Ward (Correct me if I'm wrong) had a lot of bustling areas that I went.

Then I went to this Sushi restaurant with a conveyor belt named (Kura Revolving Sushi Bar). The food was amazing and a must visit area in Kyoto. 🍣 My favourite one is a guilty pleasure but the one with the natto sushi because it was the first time I ever tried natto and I've longed to eat it ever since then.

Overall downtown Kyoto may not be dotonbori but has it's own merits of being an everyday place to walk around a bustling area. 💯

Japan 🗾

Day 3 Part 1 🇯🇵

Kyoto Trip!

First time riding a bullet train, 🚅. I wish I was riding it more often than once. A trip from Osaka to Kyoto only took 10-20 minutes!!! Then I entered the city of Kyoto, it looked so beautiful, much older and colder even in its metropolitan area. I stopped by in the streets looking how clean the traffic was, comparing it to Cebu. I wish there was less cars. While walking, we went to that matcha store and passed by a samurai Musuem. It felt like the day was complete, I realized it was far from over.

Japan 🗾

Cup Noodle Musuem 🍜

Day 2 Part 3

June 10, 2026

Happy to enter one of the most iconic food museums in the world, I got to make my own cup noodle and explore the history of this yummy food. It's amazing how one dream and full of ambition can lead to feed billions of mouths every day. Inspiring me to continue to strive better despite the adversity that comes in my way. As to the Cup Noodles, please stay yummy and nutritious!

Japan Day 2 🗾 🇯🇵

Part 2

June 10, 2026

While walking back to the nearest bus station from the temple 🛕, I got to hike in this beautiful trail; Minoh Park, alongside stopping by the waterfall; Minoh Falls, got to experience nature at its finest in Japan.

Experiencing and breathing how beautiful nature can be makes me want to touch grass more and not bedrot.

Japan Day 2 🇯🇵 🗾

Katsuoji Temple ⛩️

June 11, 2026 ⛲🌲

Katsuoji Temple was the first time I was awestruck feeling like a mansion in the middle of a remote area. Love to be going back there again; the journey going through every area for a stamp and once completed, feels satisfying. ⛩️

6️⃣7️⃣ 🤲

Zambales 🏕🏞